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Nintendo World Report's Year in Review

August 2013

by Justin Berube - December 27, 2013, 7:11 pm EST

The Wii U was able to show signs of life with a few game releases in August.

Staff Thoughts

Becky Hollada, Associate Editor -

August saw the announcement of the 2DS and I'm sure I wasn't the only one who didn't know what to think when we first saw it. But the idea of a more kid friendly 3DS grew on me. It was something I could easily see giving to my young nephew to start him on the path of a lifetime gamer. I think expanding on an already widely successful handheld was a good move on Nintendo's part.

Justin Baker, Reviews Editor -

August was a rough month for Nintendo fans. The 2DS was making people start to wonder what Nintendo was thinking (even though it turned out to be a success) and I was beginning to wonder myself if the much-delayed Pikmin 3 was too little too late for the Wii U. Luckily for us, November was coming, and it turned out to be a month of redemption in my eyes.

Justin Berube, Features Editor -

August was the month I was waiting for all year as a Wii U owner. I personally believe Nintendo held off releasing some of its completed software in order to have a soft relaunch of the console so they could then have a steady stream of content hit the platform throughout the rest of the year. I think I was right.

Thanks to Nintendo's strategy, August saw the release of the highly anticipated Pikmin 3, and The Big N also released a physical copy of New Super Luigi U. On top of those titles, I also snagged some eShop games. Yes, there were finally some new titles to play on Wii U. I just wish it didn't take so long.

Features

How Perception Is Key to Nintendo's Survival - In which someone decrees that Nintendo needs a Halo, and they're probably right.

Trials and Tribulations in Pikmin 3 Multiplayer - Is Pikmin 3 accessible for series newcomers in multiplayer?

The Pokémon Game Show - What You Need to Know - Pokémon fans don't need TGS when they have their own special event!

Hype and 3DS eShop Games: A Fickle Mistress - Pleasant surprises for some can lead to disappointments for others.

Digesting the Nintendo 2DS, Wii U Price Cut, and Wind Waker Fun - No word on when the Wii U goes free to play, though.

Nintendo 2DS Roundtable - Is it a genius move, or have they lost their minds?

Reviews

Pikmin 3 (Wii U)

Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (3DS)

SteamWorld Dig (3DS)

DuckTales Remastered (Wii U)

Events

Pokémon Game Show

Nintendo Direct


News

Mario Golf: World Tour Still Slated for 2014 - Despite a recent listing, Mario's next sports game is still set for release next year.

New StreetPass Games Made 'About $4 Million' in Their First Month - I guess it does print money...

3DS System Update for StreetPass Relay Available - Update your handheld now!

Animal Crossing Plaza App Available Now on Wii U eShop - It's classic Miiverse with an Animal Crossing twist.

Pokémon X and Y Will Introduce Mega Evolutions - MegaPikachu, use MegaThunderbolt!

Pokémon X and Y Introduces New Super Training and Core Training Systems - Are you confused by the EV Training in past titles? These new systems might just be the primer you need.

Iwata: Price Isn't Why the Wii U Isn't Selling - Says quality software is what will move units.

3DS Remains Best-Selling System in the United States - Earthbound is also doing well for itself on the Wii U eShop.

New Pokémon Anime Announced at Pokémon Game Show - Its been a long time coming, but Pokémon fans will finally be able to see a proper adaptation of the original games.

The Wonderful 101 Originally Featured Nintendo Characters - Smash Bros. almost wasn't the only Nintendo mascot-fest on the block.

Wind Waker HD Adds New Difficulty Setting, Smooth Sailing - Get ready for Hero Mode, the Swift Sail, and an easier Triforce hunt.

Zelda: Wind Waker HD-Themed Wii U Hardware Coming Soon - Zelda fans won't be able to resist this GamePad.

Nintendo Unveils New Entry Level Handheld, the 2DS - The next iteration of the 3DS is coming sooner than you think.

Wii U Price Drop Announced Alongside Wind Waker HD Bundle - Also, Wind Waker HD will be available digitally on September 20, before the October 4 retail release.

GameStop to Include Ganondorf Figure with Some Physical Copies of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD - Nintendo didn't forget about Zelda fans that already own a Wii U.

Intelligent Systems Developing Daigasso Band Brothers P - Nintendo puts new teaser site up.

Images

Talkback

ShyGuyDecember 19, 2013

The most complaint filled yearbook EVER. Let me sign your copy...

Yo Mario, keep it real bro!

-ShyGuy

nickmitchDecember 20, 2013

Hey, Luigi! Remember when I said it was your year?

I think I may have been a bit mistaken.

2014 is all yours though!

-nickmitch

azekeDecember 20, 2013

Will not comment on the hoopla around the console this year, because i am that weirdo who thinks console are about games so my report is ALL about games.

I skipped most of the hot stuff 3DS was getting this year:
passed on Fire Emblem
skipped Animal Crossing
shrugged at Pokemon
picked Mario over Zelda: Link Between Worlds
didn't get Luigi's Mansion 2 due to shipping shenanigans on Amazon's side (i eventually got it much, much later, but still haven't even started playing).

The biggest highlight on the 3DS for me this year was me starting to play Kid Icarus: Uprising again. Finished the story and dumped some serious hours into it. And still feel like playing it even more. Also played a few DS and GBA games. Otherwise, most of my Nintendo gaming time went on Wii U.

I haven't actually started gaming on consoles until three years ago so as you can guess i have decades old backlog worth of series that are completely unknown to me. That's why i rarely play games that actually came this year and most of it is just me catching up to general western audience who grew up with this stuff i was missing by surviving through post USSR 90s.

This is more or less what i played on Wii U this year:
New Super Mario Bros U -- alone and with friends
La Mulana on WiiWare
Majora's Mask
A few random matches in Tekken Tag Tournament 2 with friends
Toki Tori 2+ -- what a great game!
DuckTales: Remastered
Wonderful 101 -- one of the best gaming experiences i ever had in my life. I was both laughing and crying during game's many finale climaxes. Easily best game across any platform. No, "we want cinematic audience" bullshit, just pure gaming in distilled form. As it should be.
Assassin's Creed III -- this was my first AC on consoles (played through entirety of Ezio trilogy this year on PC and became an addict for this kind of game).
Super Mario 3D World -- second best game i played this year after Wonderful 101. Third best game if you count Bayonetta which of course came out long time ago.
Lots of semi random Wii stuff:
Punch-Out!!
Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands
both Super Mario Galaxy games
both Pikmin games
Rayman Origins (unfortunately Legends was somewhat a disappointment in terms of content compared to Origins)
probably something else i forgot

So with my favorite top three games for this year all being on Wii U (W101, Mario, TT 2), i say it was a great year.

"great Pokemon Mystery Dungeon"

Paging Mr Jones...

Quote from: Shaymin

"great Pokemon Mystery Dungeon"

Paging Mr Jones...

Don't even regret scoring it similarly to X/Y  :cool; . Game was awesome.

pokepal148Spencer Johnson, Contributing WriterDecember 28, 2013

Quote from: Webmalfunction

Quote from: Shaymin

"great Pokemon Mystery Dungeon"

Paging Mr Jones...

Don't even regret scoring it similarly to X/Y  :cool; . Game was awesome.

the second one at least had a decent story going in from start to finish along with some neat imagery made using both screens. Based on the demo the third one just feels like they forgot what they did so well before.

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